


Unseen

by Wingstar102



Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Slash, Serious Injuries, Shapeshifting, Spook Me Multi-Fandom Halloween Ficathon, dragon - Freeform, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-26
Updated: 2013-10-26
Packaged: 2017-12-30 13:47:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1019347
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wingstar102/pseuds/Wingstar102
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Not all things that drop into the Jerusalem Bureau should ever be there.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unseen

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Spook-Me Fic-A-Thon. Enjoy!

“Altair.”  
  
Malik’s voice floated through the deep darkness of the Bureau, strained by something that the assassin’s sharp eyes couldn’t even see. Actually, Altair couldn’t see much of anything. None of the lanterns or candles were lit despite the lateness of the hour. It was unusual for Malik to neglect to keep a light burning, for he took his position as Dai very seriously.  
  
“Altair, I require your assistance, if you would.” However, his friend stood completely still in the almost total darkness of the doorway to the front room, leaving Altair to wait in the sunroom until he moved. When Malik finally did move, it wasn’t the slightly different gait that he’d grown used to his friend having when his arm had been removed. Instead the dark form stumbled forward, into the pale and weak moonlight filtering through the top of the open roof, the black robes marking his status oddly tattered and dragging, the blood shining through the rents in the fabric, dark against the olive skin.  
  
Darting forward and catching him in his arms, Altair looked on, horrified, at Malik’s ravaged state. “By God, what happened to you?”  
  
The chuckle was sardonic and followed by a soft hiss of pain when Altair shifted his grip to lift Malik into his arms. There wasn’t any way he was going to make the man walk if he didn’t have to. Though Malik hissed louder once cradled snugly against Altair’s chest and they were moving into the front room, he still found enough breath to issue a snarky retort. “Novice, if I knew that, I would not need your help. As it stands, once I find out who tried to attack me from behind, I will gut them slowly.” Altair wouldn’t admit it, but the sharp tongue eased his worry some.  
  
“Dai, I have not been a Novice for years now.” Altair laughed a little as he settled Malik onto some of the cushions in the room, careful to leave him sitting up and not lounging back onto his injuries. Then it took only a moment’s work to light the lanterns in the room. “And I have no doubts that you will gut whoever came after you. That is most likely the reason they made sure to overcome you in such a way! Your wickedly sharp blades can not take them apart if you can not identify them.”  
  
He turned to the next task, making short work of rifling through the shelves behind the large counter where Malik usually preformed his duties, he pulled out linen bandages, salves and a couple of clay bowls to help him patch up his friend. But it wasn’t until he turned around to look at Malik in the flickering firelight that Altair really saw the damage.  
  
Ravaged was the only word to really describe it. Blood covered all the olive skin peaking through the rents in Malik’s robes and revealed gouges, cuts and animal-looking bites. The scales had him coming up short momentarily, dark brown-black things that flashed metallic in the light, and seemed to spread across the shoulders and collar bones and up Malik’s throat. What really brought what he was seeing to fantastical levels were the wings. What he thought were tattered robes in the dark were large, fragile-looking, leathery wings anchored to what looked like his shoulder blades and collar bones. Probably the spine too, but Altair couldn’t actually see to be sure from where he was standing.  
  
“Hideous, is it not?” Malik seemed to slump, though he didn’t move at all, his voice so quiet it almost didn’t reach his ears.   
  
The changes were unexpected, sure, but they weren’t a disgusting disfiguration, at least, not to Altair. As an assassin he’d seen enough, and caused enough, death and destruction that a few new additions to Malik had no affect on Altair’s view of him. He was more concerned about the obviously painful wounds. So he did the only thing he could to ease Malik’s mind. Gathering up his supplies, he went over and knelt in front of Malik, setting the stuff down and gently took the down-turned face between his large hands. “Nothing about you is hideous Malik.” Finally Malik looked up, dark brown eyes sparkling with surprise. Well, Altair knew he would never be accused of having a way with words. “Now, what happened to cause this? It almost looks like you fought a genii masquerading as a dragon.”  
  
“Considering the state in which you find me, I would not be surprised. Honestly, I have no idea. I was closing the Bureau for the night when something crashed through the ceiling, as if it was not made of stone, and landed on my back. During the fight, the last of the lights were knocked over and I did not get even a glimpse of the creature before it ran off. All I remember is overwhelming pain as my body started changing and then I just barely heard you drop through the entry.” Malik took a breath and gave Altair a wry glance. “I can not even say where I found the strength to rise and go to you.”  
  
Altair just nodded and briefly touched the Dai’s forehead with his own. “We will figure this out and I will take care of your injuries.” He let go and picked up the empty bowls, pausing when Malik, strong and tough assassin that he used to be, gave a distressed noise. “No fear. I am fetching water to clean your cuts and I will return. You do not need to fear anymore because I will protect you.”  
  
He was pleased when the tension drained from his friend. Altair vowed to hunt down the dragon or genii or whatever it was that hurt Malik and murder it. But healing Malik came first.  
  
He got to work.  
  
~~~  
  
End


End file.
